It would be easy for Josh Corbett to wallow in self-pity and ponder 'why me?'. Instead he is celebrating his short-lived AFL career the only way he knows how - upbeat, optimistic, grateful. or signup to continue reading The likeable conversationalist only managed five out of a possible 46 matches during his two-year stint at Fremantle.
But his impact went well beyond kicks, marks and goals. Corbett, 28, was named the Dockers' in his two seasons at the club, accepting the honour for a second time at the Doig Medal count on Wednesday, September 18, . "It's amazing to be recognised for just being you, that's the way I look at it," the North Warrnambool Eagles export told "I have been at the club for two years but I feel like I've been there for 10.
"I remember one of the first people I met when I got there was Bill. He's the maintenance man and I have had a good relationship with him ever since. "He's been doing this 100,000 push-up challenge so he gets in there at 5am in the morning, runs laps and does push-ups.
" Those relationships and "being curious of who everyone else is" were instilled in Corbett during his childhood in Warrnambool, the seaside city in south-west Victoria. "A bit of my personality which has come through from my parents (Ross and Maria) has been able to shine here," he said of his time with Fremantle. "The club has created the environment for me to blossom and be the best version of myself.
" That warm personality has also helped Corbett make connections outside of the Western Australian football bubble. "It's a big country town, Perth. I know all my neighbours by first name and when I am away they will take the bins out," he said.
"It's very nice like that and there's lots of similarities and it's just a big version of Warrnambool in some ways." Fremantle found Corbett off-field roles with its community sector as well as AFLW and WAFL programs when a hip replacement forced him to the sidelines. Surgery in December 2023 put his football mortality in the spotlight and having an outlet as he underwent a rigorous and lengthy rehabilitation proved crucial.
It also might have opened up career opportunities too. "I'd love to stay on (at the club) in some capacity. I've done a bit of work in the community department and I have absolutely loved that," Corbett said.
"It is very handy being in a football state and using football as the vehicle. We might be going out into schools and teaching good eating habits and a lot of the time if you go out there as a player or using Fremantle as the bridge." Corbett's on-field goals were altered significantly after his operation.
They changed from wanting to establish a spot in the Dockers' forward line to merely playing again, at any level. He was aiming to become the first player to return from a hip replacement and play AFL. But, as he encountered setbacks, retirement became the most likely option.
Corbett, who was drafted to Gold Coast as a mature-age recruit, said it was his call and it "wasn't an overnight decision" to end a career which netted 41 games across six seasons. "I am trying to get back running, let alone play football at the moment," he said. "We always knew it was going to be a long shot to get back and play football.
I am a very optimistic and positive person and we put ourselves in with a good chance to play some football this year. "Then the rehab had some ebbs and flows and it just got to the point where the hip wasn't responding as well as we'd hoped so we put tools down from the running perspective for a while." Corbett is still using Fremantle's facilities, such as its gravity machine, as he recovers.
Long-term he'd love to tackle a triathlon while a return to football, at any level, hasn't been ruled out but would be considered "pretty challenging". "I am running very slowly on this gravity machine. I am on about 80 per cent of my body weight at the moment and that's only 20 minutes at a time, broken up to interval running," he said.
"The plan is to get back and run straight lines essentially because when I was doing my running before it was for a football return, so that's change of direction, short-sharp deceleration stuff." Corbett, known for his strong marking and endurance, had a whirlwind rise to the AFL after impressing at VFL level. Now he's taking a deep breath and reflecting on what he achieved, labelling it "a beautiful journey".
"It's been crazy how fast it's all gone. I remember walking in at Gold Coast on the 4th of November - I still remember the date - when we had our two-kilometre time-trial and here we are six years later over in Fremantle and all done," he said. "My dad and I were reflecting on our Werribee days.
We used to drive down to Werribee three times a week to go to training. "We don't look at it as a sacrifice. We just saw it as an opportunity to see how far you could go and we were lucky enough to get 41 games at the top level.
" Corbett's attention now turns to a bumper weekend for his football clubs - North Warrnambool Eagles (Hampden league), Werribee (VFL) and Peel Thunder (WAFL) will all feature in grand finals. He will also attend the AFL grand final - his first - with his father a week later. "I promised Dad two things when I got into the AFL system - I'd take him to the grand final because we got tickets (through the AFLPA) and I'd take him to Barnbougle to play golf.
And every off-season I've either been injured or had surgery so I haven't taken him to play golf in Tasmania and I haven't played golf since I had my hip replacement so I won't be going down in this off-season either," he joked. Sports journalist with an interest in feature reporting. Email: justine.
[email protected] Sports journalist with an interest in feature reporting.
Email: [email protected].
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